SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Federal authorities are investigating the collapse of a crane at the site of a hotel construction project on Lake Avenue Tuesday afternoon.

There were no injuries as a result of the accident, but U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration Area Director Kim Caspillon said the firm began an investigation based on media reports of the incident.

The more than 100-foot crane boom bent over the top of a crane and came to rest on the ground Tuesday after what Brian Akley, vice president of business development with MLB Construction Services, said was a "slow motion" malfunction.

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"It just bent over slowly and kept bending over until it touched the ground," he said.

The crane is owned and operated by Burkel and Company Contractors Inc., a subcontractor that is transporting the crane to its out-of-state headquarters for analysis, Akley said.

A second crane owned by DA Collins was brought in to remove the twisted metal of the boom. By Thursday, that crane had been taken from the site, but the base of the broken crane remained at the site at the corner of Lake Avenue and Pavilion Row.

OSHA officials were onsite Wednesday to talk to everyone involve d in the accident, but Akley said he is confident the investigation will reveal that the cause was a mechanical malfunction.

"All procedures were followed. Everything was in order," he said. The crane was up to date on its inspections, and its operator was licensed.

OSHA has specific regulations regarding the operation of cranes. Caspillon said the investigation will take weeks and she will not know what kinds of penalties are possible until after OSHA determines whether any violations occurred or citations will be issued.

Representatives of MLB did not contact OSHA, but Caspillon said the company was not required to unless someone died or three or more people were hospitalized overnight. In this case, OSHA initiated the investigation after reading about it in newspapers.

Akley said the accident should not put them behind schedule for the project's completion because "we have so much else to do there" and that other work would continue until a replacement crane was provided by Burkel.

Thursday, though, after the DA Collins crane left only one worker remained for a few hours. By mid-afternoon, the site was empty.

The lot is owned by Coldwell Banker Commercial Prime Properties of Cohoes, which is constructing a mixed-use retail building and longer-stay hotel.